The slogan "post-boom" has become a cipher in German-speaking contemporary for changes, transformations, as well as twists and turns that have occurred in Western industrialized countries since the 1970s (Voigt 2021; Doering-Manteuffel/Raphael/Schlemmer 2016; Reitmayer/Schlemmer 2014; Andresen/Bitzegeio/Mittag 2011). Following the "trente glorieuse" (Fourastie 1979)—the formative years of economic prosperity, technological modernization, and the expansion of mass consumption after World War II—a "social change of revo-lutionary quality" occurred, especially since the global oil crisis in 1973 (Doering-Manteuffel/Raphael 2008). This change persisted beyond the Cold War and extended to the present, manifesting in socio-economic ideals, production and work methods, social and educational policies, as well as the professional and everyday lives of Western industrial societies.
The increasing (youth) unemployment in the 1970s and 80s, along with the Club of Rome's report, "The Limits to Growth" (1972), shattered the brief "dream of perpetual prosperity" (Lutz 1989). In the emerging "Age of Fracture" (Rodgers 2012), where the certainties of modernity began to crumble, the nation-state lost trust as the leading force of the economy. A skepticism towards progress and growth spread. Jürgen Habermas (1985) spoke of a "crisis of the welfare state" and an "exhaustion of utopian energies." This "end of confidence" (Jarausch 2008) not only marked a departure from welfare state and educational expansion but also saw non-state actors gaining prominence. Challenges of modernization, such as environmental protection, population growth, and human rights, gained global attention and significance (Ferguson/Maier/Manela/Sargent 2011). Despite globalization trends, universal and generalizing categories and perspectives gave way to an emphasis on particularity, individuality, and uniqueness (Sarasin 2021). This surge of individualization created multiple opportunities and possibilities for other ways of living but also increased the pressure of decision constraints, shifting the burden of coping with social problems onto the individual.
These ruptures have also been evident in educational policy, education, and educational research since the 1970s (Hoffmann-Ocon/Criblez 2018). From the History of Education perspective, the conference aims to address these breaks, turning points, and transformations between 1970 and 2000. Contributions are sought that address one or more of the following aspects: (1) Educational policy and management, (2) Welfare state, youth programs, and unemployment, (3) Generational relations, youth cultures, and new social movements, (4) New media/digitization in the context of family, school, and continuing education, (5) pedagogy, educational knowledge, and concepts of educational research.
Abstracts (max. 600 words) for a 30-minute presentation in English or German can be submitted by May 3, 2024, via email to zumhof@uni-trier.de. Authors will receive feedback by the end of May 2024. Publication of the contributions is intended.